The IRFU and National Dairy Council hosted a Nutrition Seminar at the Aviva Stadium recently. The seminar was aimed at Foundation Level coaches who are dealing with young developing players.

An interactive workshop providing coaches of young rugby players with up to date sports nutritional information took place at the Aviva Stadium last week.

Organised jointly by the IRFU and The National Dairy Council as part of the Milk It For All It's Worth campaign, it set out to up-skill coaches working with players ranging from 12-16 years of age, providing practical nutritional advice to help to players to play to their best ability.

The workshop was led by the IRFU performance nutritionist Ruth Wood-Martin and Emma McCrudden, performance nutritionist with Leinster Rugby.

The performance nutritionists presented current sport nutrition principles and used practical demonstrations to illustrate how young players can meet their nutritional needs.

The link between energy requirements and exercise was explained, and within this, the role of macronutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat) in supporting training and competition were examined.

Emma explained that the core concepts of performance nutrition are relatively easy for anyone from any sport or age group to grasp.

But the true professional athlete understands why nutrition can optimise performance and allows them control over this aspect of performance.

Ruth explained that food is the fuel used to support the extra energy demand of exercise. The main fuels used during exercise are fat and carbohydrate, and both of these fuels are stored in the muscles that allow them to work during exercise.

Without sufficient amounts of the right type of fuel, every player's ability to perform in sport will suffer.

The importance of the timing of food and fluid intake to best prepare for exercise and recover after it were described, and practical examples were used to illustrate how to get this right in training and competition.

The workshop included hands-on scenarios aimed at translating the theory into practice.

Participants at the workshop were encouraged to direct their young players to the Eat 2 Compete series of fact sheets, available to download at www.irishrugby.ie/eat2compete.

The countdown is on to the Women's Sevens Dublin tournament in UCD on August 22-23. Anthony Eddy, IRFU Director of Rugby Sevens & Women's Rugby, previews what promises to be an exciting couple of days.

Tickets for the tournament start at 5 euro, with children free, and are available to buy here - http://www.ticketmaster.ie/Womens-Sevens-Series-tickets/artist/2134381?tm_link=artist_artistvenue_module.

Jenny Murphy talks about the progress made by the Ireland Women's Sevens team and their pool draw for the upcoming Women's Sevens Dublin tournament in UCD on August 22-23.

Tickets for the tournament start at 5 euro, with children free, and are available to buy here - http://www.ticketmaster.ie/Womens-Sevens-Series-tickets/artist/2134381?tm_link=artist_artistvenue_module.

Conor Murray and Tommy Bowe speak to Irish Rugby TV about their Rugby World Cup preparations and thank the thousands of supporters who came out to see the players at the open training session at the Sportsground.

Ireland captain Paul O'Connell gives his verdict on the team's new Rugby World Cup jersey and talks about his move to French club Toulon. Ireland's RWC 2015 range is available to pre-order now from http://shop.irishrugby.ie.

Anthony Eddy, IRFU Director of Rugby Sevens, talks about the target of a top three finish for both the Ireland Men and Women in Lisbon this weekend, as they continue on their quests for Olympic qualification.

Tom Daly, who recently captained the Ireland Men's Sevens team to the European Division C and B titles, is looking forward to playing in this weekend's Rugby Europe Olympic Repechage tournament in Lisbon, Portugal.

Ireland will host the 'Women's Sevens Dublin' at UCD on Saturday, August 22 and Sunday, August 23. Tournament director Garrett Tubridy and Ireland stars Lucy Mulhall, Jenny Murphy and Louise Galvin speak about their excitement ahead of the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series qualifier.

Coach Allen Clarke and stand-in captain Billy Holland answer questions from the media following Emerging Ireland's 45-12 victory over Georgia in the final round of their successful Tbilisi Cup campaign.

Emerging Ireland coach Allen Clarke speaks about his side's five-try 33-7 win over Uruguay in the Tbilisi Cup and the first half injury to captain Rhys Ruddock. They wrap up the tournament against hosts Georgia on Sunday.

Speaking about the floods that occurred following the Tbilisi Cup's first round, Emerging Ireland team manager Joey Miles said: "A natural event like that, a tragedy like that puts the game of rugby into perspective. We express our regrets to the Georgian people and the Georgian Union for the terrible tragedy that they had."

David O'Reilly from the IRFU Charitable Trust's Corporate Patrons Committee speaks about the new scheme which provides businesses with unique networking opportunities and provides a platform for companies to effectively activate their CSR programmes. For further information, please contact Linda Black of the Charitable Trust - telephone (01) 6473866 or email: linda.black@irfu.ie / http://www.irishrugby.ie/news/34728.php.